


Love On The Front Page

by jstonedd



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-02
Updated: 2016-10-17
Packaged: 2018-08-19 03:14:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 14,676
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8187367
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jstonedd/pseuds/jstonedd
Summary: Being in a relationship with the Avatar is a public spectacle, especially if you're already CEO of a big company yourself. Asami quickly learns that Republic City has become like that one extended family member who won't stop poking their nose into her love life.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> i'm so mad that i discovered this quality ship so late

Finally, some quiet and peace after an endless series of business meetings. Now that she was alone in her office, which was on the highest accessible floor of the Future Industries Tower, Asami kicked off her heels and sank down in her office chair with a relieved sigh.

She had learned how to appreciate silence once she had taken over her father’s company and started to handle most of the business decisions herself. People talked too much over too little; in the end, all business plans could be summarized into increasing profit and lowering costs. Asami was getting tired of being caught up in a never ending loop of maximizing profit as the next company goal, tired of hearing one more manager tell her that they needed to increase their brand value.

Asami closed her eyes. Absolute quiet. This was nice.

“ASAMI - mpf!”

And that nice moment was over when something heavy crashed against her windows.

Jumping out of her seat, Asami turned around and froze, wondering if she should be laughing or screaming.

Glued to the window like a dead fly on a windshield, Korra’s pained face was squashed against the glass while her limbs were sprawled out. It wasn’t until Korra began to slowly slide down the glass with a squeaky noise that Asami finally reacted and ripped the window open, pulling her girlfriend into the office who dropped on the floor like a sack of potatoes.

“What in the name of…” Asami kneeled down next to Korra’s head, lightly touching her cheeks when blue eyes were still in a daze. “Korra? Korra! Say something!”

Still a bit out of it, Korra flashed her a toothy grin. “I might have severely underestimated the distance of your windows to my face.”

Asami let out a snort in disbelief, her worry fading. “Oh, you think?” She flicked a finger against Korra’s nose, getting a whimper in response. “Don’t ever surprise me like that again, I’m too young to die of a heart attack.”

“And too pretty, that would be such a waste,” Korra mumbled dreamily, staring up at Asami with big, round eyes. “So pretty. Do I ever tell you that?”

“Only every day,” Asami said with a smile, feeling her chest getting warm like it was the first time she had heard it. Some things never changed. “Come on, let’s get you on your feet, you dork.”

Korra let herself be pulled up to a standing position, but her wobbly legs almost caved in and she would have fallen if it weren’t for Asami holding her upright. “Okay, maybe you’re not fine after all.”

“I’m super fine,” Korra protested with a scrunched up expression. “Have you seen my body? Super fine.” She gave a sloppy wink which looked more like a slow blink, then flexed her arms. “Nice.”

On the one hand, this seemed like normal Korra behavior that Asami would roll her eyes at on the outside but find endearing on the inside. On the other hand, Korra usually displayed this behavior only in an ironic way, both knowing that she was just joking by playing the arrogant musclehead.

“Why don’t we get you to a hospital,” Asami suggested, but Korra grunted in displeasure.

“What kind of Avatar gets beaten by window glass? Not me!” And when Korra bent her arm and jutted a thumb out to point at her own face, she accidentally poked herself in the eye. “Ah!”

Again, Asami wondered if it was considered rude to laugh now.

“Totally meant to do that,” Korra winced, holding her right eye. “Come on now, laugh, or I would’ve almost blinded myself for nothing.”

“Oh, Korra,” Asami sighed with an amused grin. “Maybe you should lie down for a while. That crash sounded pretty nasty so I don’t think it felt good either.”

“Pff,” Korra dismissively waved with her hand, “just a slight bump. Needed to test the quality of your windows anyway, don’t want anyone else breaking in.”

“They’re bulletproof,” Asami answered, “and apparently also Avatar-proof.” She crossed her arms. “Korra, you need to lie down. And don’t argue against me, I’ve had enough tiring discussions today and would rather not kick your ass.”

Korra blinked a few times, wordlessly staring at Asami before she said slowly, “I’m conflicted. You threatening to kick my ass is pretty hot but you also sounded just like my mother.”

“Korra,” Asami sighed in exasperation, “please don’t make it weird.”

“Not trying to!” Korra raised her hands defensively. “Alright, I’ll lie down. But only if you cuddle with me.”

Asami bit her lip. “I’m sorry, I can’t leave my work now –“

“Just a short break, a short nap,” Korra carefully interrupted, pointing to the large couch in Asami’s office. “We’re not even leaving your office.”

“No,” Asami firmly said, “not that couch. Remember the last time we just wanted to take a ‘nap’ on it? I missed two business meetings and had to hire a new assistant because the other one was too embarrassed to work for me anymore. Also, one of my favorite panties is still lost somewhere inside the cracks.”

“Ah, good times,” Korra hummed to herself with a satisfied grin like it was an old, treasured memory.

“That was last week.”

“Aw, come on, Asami, you are already overworking yourself again. Just a short rest won’t hurt?” And Korra batted her eyelashes.

Unimpressed, Asami sat down in her office chair and closed her eyes. “I am resting. Here. In my chair. While you lie down. On that couch. Without me.”

Korra grumbled and trotted to the couch, letting herself plop down on it. “The Avatar is not pleased.”

“The Avatar should stop being a big crybaby and rest.”

“So does the Avatar’s girlfriend.”

“The Avatar’s girlfriend will no longer comment on this or talk in third person about herself.”

Lying on her arms crossed behind her head, Korra stared up at the ceiling. “I really like you, you know?”

Suppressing a giggle, Asami fondly looked at her girlfriend. She loved it when Korra would sometimes randomly and bluntly state her feelings. “I sure hope so. Or that would make this dating thing really awkward.”

Korra rolled on her stomach and peered at Asami with a soft look. “I care about you so much, I wished you’d take better care of yourself.”

Asami felt her heart flutter and she stood up from her chair, strolling over to the couch where Korra was lying on. Her girlfriend immediately scooted to the side, making some space for Asami to lie down next to her, face to face.

“You’re very sweet,” Asami whispered with a smile, placing a soft kiss on Korra’s forehead. “But same goes for you. There’s not one week where I don’t have to tend to new bruises on your body.”

Korra threw an arm around Asami’s waist and pulled her closer, nuzzling her face against her girlfriend’s neck. “Okay. I’ll tell my enemies that my girlfriend would appreciate it if they didn’t fight back.”

“I’m sure they’ll understand,” Asami chuckled, stroking Korra’s hair. “I know blue is your color, but I don’t think bruises really count.”

A puff of hot air tickled Asami’s neck when Korra laughed against her skin, making Asami giggle herself.

“And here I thought they made me look hot,” Korra muttered, her free hand beginning to roam Asami’s side up and down. “So did Bolin lie to me about girls digging the beaten up hero look?”

Shuddering beneath the touch, Asami buried her hand in Korra’s hair. “Well, I can’t speak for all of them. My personal kink is seeing you healthy and unharmed.”

“Now that’s an unrealistic kink,” Korra chuckled, her fingers slipping beneath Asami’s blouse, feeling muscles quiver beneath her feathery light caresses. “Why don’t we stick to the usual?”

Asami let out breathy moan, “And that would be?”

“Having sex on this couch right now even when your door is unlocked and your assistant could walk in any minute.”

Growling, Asami suddenly stopped Korra’s hand from inching any closer to her chest. “That was your plan all along, wasn’t it? Sweet talking me into lying here with you so we can have sex.”

Korra hardly managed to suppress her wide grin. “What are you talking about, I really care about your health! Let me take care of you…”

“I can’t believe I fell for that!” Asami huffed, moving to stand up from the couch.

“Asami,” Korra whined, stretching out a hand after her, “when’s the last time you relaxed-“

“If you mean sex by relaxing, then yesterday night. And this morning too.” Asami fixed her blouse. “Korra, normally I’d agree with your idea of relaxing, but lately you’ve been kind of…insatiable.” Her cheeks flushed. “It almost feels like sex is half of your workout program.”

Korra wiggled with her eyebrows. “How do you know it’s not?”

“Urgh.” Asami turned away and walked back to her desk, knowing that she couldn’t allow herself to be pulled in by Korra’s eyes or she would never get any work done. She had already extended her lunch break without meaning to. “Korra, don’t you have a world to save?”

“What does it matter, it’ll fall into chaos again anyway by the next week,” Korra threw up her hands in frustration. “They really should have included this part in the job description. Also the awful working hours. No perks besides knowing how to kick someone’s ass using four different elements.’” 

“No perks?” Asami raised a brow. “You’re a hero, Korra, people admire you. They are throwing gifts and money after you, dedicating art and statues to you.”

Korra hummed noncommittally, not all that impressed with it. “They would admire anyone as long as it’s the Avatar. Not because it’s me.”

Asami leaned back in her chair when she began to realize that Korra had been avoiding her Avatar duties by focusing all of her energy on their relationship, both emotionally and physically. She wasn’t complaining and she was probably going to miss the attention, but the world needed its hero.

“Even if it’s only the idea of you that they admire, don’t you think that their hope in you is something worth protecting? They believe in the Avatar because they believe in peace.”

“You’re right.” Korra pushed herself off the couch and straightened herself, blue eyes glowing with new found strength. “A world where someone as amazing as you live in is definitely worth saving.”

Korra never failed to remind Asami on why she fell in love with her. And making her feel so loved and wanted was just one of the many reasons. “Now you’re just trying to get into my pants again, you charmer,” Asami said with a laugh.

“Did it work?” Korra said in a hopeful tone.

“Maybe,” Asami winked, “but don’t you think about it until you’ve beaten up a few bad guys.”

Her expression lighting up, Korra beamed at Asami like a child that had been promised candy. “Even if I get bruises?”

Asami smiled, green eyes twinkling in amusement. “I’ll be there to kiss them better.”

Korra’s chest swelled as she flashed a large grin at her girlfriend. “I’m starting to like my job again.” She walked over to Asami, kissed her deeply on the lips before she climbed out of the window.

“Wait, Korra, not the window-” Asami trailed off, watching her girlfriend drop out of the window. For a few terrifying seconds, Asami was frozen in shock, believing that Korra had jumped to her death.

“Sorry, I forgot how high up we are!” Korra appeared before her window again, using airbending to stay in the air. “See you later tonight!” And then she used firebending to propel herself through the skies.

Asami put a hand over her heart. If she was going to die early of a heart attack, then she was going to come back as a spirit and haunt Korra forever.

 

* * *

 

Asami considered herself as a very rational person, preferring to base her decisions on logic and reason rather than just a gut feeling. She needed every piece of information available before she would make a judgement, always reserving the right for doubt.

But the longer she stared at the morning newspaper that was slowly getting crumpled in her hands, the more did she feel compelled to give in to the impulse of burning that offensive piece of paper.

Releasing a long sigh, she rolled up the newspaper and took it with her as she walked back to her bedroom, smiling when she heard a quiet snore. She crawled back into bed and silently watched the profile of her girlfriend for a few minutes before she gently nudged against her nose with a poke of her finger.

“Hey, sleepyhead…it’s already noon…”

A lazy smile appeared on Korra’s face before she even opened her eyes, humming in a deep, satisfied tone. “Morning, ‘Sami.”

“Slept well?”

Instinctively turning to her lover, Korra rolled over and threw an arm around Asami’s waist, pulling her closer. “You know I always do when you’re with me. Either that or I don’t get any sleep at all.”

Chuckling, Asami brushed Korra’s loose bangs out of her face, tucking them behind her ears. “So I’m both the problem and the solution.”

“As are most things,” Korra said with a yawn, “there’s hardly one perfect thing that won’t cause new problems further down the chain.”

“Getting philosophical before you had your wake-up tea, I’m impressed,” Asami laughed quietly.

Korra opened one eye, grinning in mirth. “What can I say, your intellect has rubbed off on me. Among other things.”

Asami playfully hit Korra on her arm with the newspaper she was still holding.

“Hm, what’s that?” Korra curiously eyed it.

“Oh, just something to get your blood pumping in case you needed help waking up.” Asami handed Korra the paper.

“Hey, this person looks just like me!” she mumbled in wonder, rubbing at her eyes as she tried to analyze the picture. “And that other person looks like President Raiko’s daughter, Yuki. Aw look, Asami, they’re hugging! What a cute couple. What does the press say about them?” Korra frowned, squinting her eyes. _“’Cheating Avatar Exposed! Caught With The President’s Daughter!’”_

Silence. Korra squinted her eyes a little bit harder, but the headline and the picture didn’t change.  

“I’m really not photogenic,” Korra said sullenly after a while.

“Yeah?” Asami snorted in amusement. “I think you look perfectly fine. It’s the context I’m worried about.”

“Funny story actually,” Korra began, propping herself up on her elbows as she carelessly threw the newspaper on the floor. “Raiko thought he could send Yuki and let her try to convince me to join his side in the latest state council decisions, but that just showed how little he knew his own daughter. Yuki and I were agreeing on the same things in every matter, so we had nothing political to discuss. But then I thought to myself, ‘shit, what if she wants to talk about super sophisticated stuff like fine arts with me, she’s going to think I’m dumb’ and I was so nervous, I broke the cup of tea she gave me.”

Somehow, Asami wasn’t surprised by this at all. She took Korra’s hands and inspected her palms for any cuts. But besides the usual blisters on calloused skin, no other damage could be found.

“I healed the cuts with waterbending,” Korra explained. “Yuki was so impressed by that, we only talked about bending for the rest of the day. Asami, she’s so awesome, you’re going to like her. Well, hopefully not more than you like me of course, because that would suck…But even if you did, I’ll have to let you go and I’ll probably cry like a loser but in the end I’ll support you as long as she makes you happy and-”

Giggling over her girlfriend’s cute rambling, Asami decided to put Korra out of her misery by lightly kissing her on her lips. “I’ll never like anyone as much as I like you.”

Face lighting up with happiness, Korra beamed at Asami with a wide grin. “Don’t you toy with my heart, Sato. How many people have you already charmed with that line?”

“Oh, you know,” Asami winked, “that line was just a prototype and you were my first test subject. Now that it seems to be working, maybe I shall develop it further?”

“You shall,” Korra said, suppressing a laugh, “under the condition that anything you develop is only to be tested on me.”

“I think I can arrange that,” Asami whispered, gaze falling on Korra’s lips.

Swallowing, Korra’s own eyes flickered to Asami’s mouth. She forced herself to stay focused for just a little bit longer. “Before I completely black out, don’t you think we should find a way to deal with the press? I hate it when they stomp all over our relationship, and depicting Yuki as your rival is getting old. Not that it has ever been a good story. But both her and you deserve better.”

Asami intertwined her fingers with Korra’s, heaving a low sigh. 

"Asami?" Korra probed when her girlfriend had become quiet. 

“I’m sometimes not even sure if I deserve you.”

Korra instantly sat up. “What are you talking about?” She frowned. “Is this about the headline?”

“No,” Asami muttered, but after a pause, she added in hesitation, “yes. Korra, it’s been months and the press still loves to pick on us. They do that for a reason.”

“Because they sell more papers that way?”

“Because they sell more papers if they cater to the public’s opinion and interests. Which means, a lot of people in Republic City like to see us fail. And I noticed the trend of always depicting you as the one to leave me first.”

Korra urgently took both of Asami’s hand and kissed them on the knuckles.

“Asami,” she pressed out in exasperation, “sometimes I wonder if you’re even real because you’re so…I can’t even describe it, but you’re so much. You’re ingenious, you’re kind, you could kick my ass at any time and I don’t even mean to rhyme but that’s just how perfect you are that everything fits. Without the four elements, I would be a nobody, but you never needed bending to become a somebody. You’ve created so much with just your brains.”

It was easy to fall in love all over again with Korra looking this intense and passionate about her feelings. Asami wanted to placate her girlfriend and tell her that she believed her, that her doubts had been wiped away, but Korra wasn’t done yet.

“I never told you this,” Korra lowered her voice in shame, “but I freak out whenever someone attractive and smart hangs around you too much. They can actually hold long conversations with you about intellectual stuff while I’m just good at punching things with different elements.” Korra ducked her head. “Sometimes I think, if I wasn’t the Avatar, you probably would have never noticed me.”

“Oh, Korra,” Asami breathed, feeling her heart constricting within her chest. She slung an arm around Korra’s neck and pulled her down towards her for a slow, deep kiss. With her mouth working against Korra’s, she swiftly switched positions until she lied on top of her girlfriend. “Avatar or not, I would still be lying here with you.”

Blue eyes looked up at her, unusually shy and unsure. “Really?”

“Of course, silly,” Asami breathed, letting her lips brush against Korra’s chapped ones. “You are exactly what I want.” She kissed her on her forehead. “You always know what to say and do to make me laugh. You always know when I need a hug or some space. You know when I’m not feeling well and you know when I’m lying about not feeling well.” She kissed her on her lips again. “That’s the kind of person I’m into.”

Blushing until the tip of her ears turned red too, Korra happily beamed at Asami. “Now look who’s trying to get into my pants before I even got the chance to put some on.”

Asami licked her lips, green eyes lighting up with desire. “Who said you’ll need them today?”

 

* * *

 

 

“I don’t know man, I think you should go for roses. It’s a classic choice.”

“Roses? Pah, boring. White Lily is where it’s at.”

“Nah, we’re talking about a high class woman here. A bouquet of all sorts of flowers is the right way to go.”

“Flowers are overrated, if you gave me flowers, I wouldn’t know what to do with ‘em.”

“Yeah, but you also don’t know what to do with people besides strangling them.”

“Guys,” Korra spoke up, looking up from her notebook and impatiently tapping a pencil against it. “Less bickering, more ideas.”

“Sorry, man, I’m stumped. Being handcuffed in a tiny space really hurts my creativity.”

Sitting in the back of a police transporter with four gang members Korra had just arrested, she was trying to take some notes on how to tell Asami that she loved her. Admittedly, her choice of advice givers wasn’t ideal, but she still had a job to do and couldn’t just leave, so she might as well try to multi-task.

“If you love her, just tell her,” the large guy next to her said in his deep, rough voice. “Ain’t much you can do wrong with that.”

His gang members nodded.

“I mean, you’re the Avatar, just take her flying to the moon or something and confess there,” another man suggested, trying to shrug but his bulky arms were handcuffed behind his back, not allowing him much movement.

“You can fly to the moon?” the third gang member with a scar across his face asked.

“No,” Korra sighed. “That would take years. Also, I would die.”

“This sucks, man. That would have been some serious move.”

“I know, right?” Korra said in the same moment the car came to a stop. They had arrived at a local precinct. “Anyway, thanks guys, I feel a bit more confident now. Oh, and I’m sorry I had to catch you smuggling drugs.”

“Nah, you were just doing your job. Good luck with your lady!”

 

\--

 

It was still beyond her why President Raiko was still, well, President. He had proven to be whimsical on more than one occasion, acting counterproductive to the people who actually tried to help. Asami had never liked him, mostly because he had always taken Korra’s work for granted and even after she had saved Republic City from Kuvira, his gratitude had been forced at best.

The only reason why he still had his job was because of his widely loved daughter, Yuki, who was his complete opposite and seemed to radiate pureness. She actively campaigned for many good causes, wasn’t afraid to lend her soft helping hands even if it was tough physical work and she was a brilliant architect. Alongside with Asami, she had helped to rebuild most of Republic City after Kuvira’s war machine had destroyed a good portion of it.

Yuki was too modest, too earnest, too much like Asami on her good days. And it wasn’t Asami who had a problem with that, it was the press who seemed to get a kick out of comparing them at any occasion. The thinly veiled attempt to incite some sort of competition between them two was what troubled Asami the most. She would have been perfectly happy about co-existing with Yuki as strong individuals, but the city’s media found it more entertaining to pitch these two women against each other.

Which was why she was livid when she came across a tabloid magazine that boldly stated, _‘Yuki Is the New Asami – Is The President's Daughter The Avatar’s Latest Lover?’_

There was an infinite amount of things wrong about that headline, but what irked Asami the most was the implication that Korra had a tendency to switch partners every so often, hence ‘latest lover’.

The magazine’s cover photo was of Yuki laughing over something a blushing Korra said. Asami could understand either reaction very well, she knew how funny her girlfriend was and she had experienced Yuki's dazzling beauty firsthand, having gotten a little bit flustered herself the first time they had met. 

It was during a charity event where the front cover photo was taken, a rather old picture from months ago that didn’t have any meaning until the press decided to dig it out of the archives just in time for a new headline about their favorite public person to write about, Avatar Korra. They liked to focus on her failures and private life more than about anything she had ever accomplished. Korra could save a hundred people from drowning and the journalists would still rather write about how unkempt she had looked during the rescue mission.

Ridiculous, Asami scoffed and with a swift flick of her wrist, she tossed the magazine into a trash can.

“Hey, what do you think you’re doing!”

For a moment, Asami had forgotten that she was standing in front of a street vendor who was selling newspapers. She had just picked a magazine from his shelf, glanced at the cover and tossed it into the trash without thinking.

“I’m so sorry,” Asami quickly said, fumbling for her wallet and frowning when she realized that she had left it on the table in her office. “No…”

“Hey, wait a minute,” the vendor narrowed his eyes in thought, “I know you…saw your face somewhere before…”

“Oh, really?” Asami pressed out without enthusiasm. Now was not the best time to be recognized because she knew that the press was going to have a field trip about this, already picturing the front title ‘ _Sato Trashes Newspaper Stand In A Fit Of Jealous Rage!_ ’

This was a headline she really didn’t need to read in her lifetime.

“Give me a hint, lady, are you some big shot around here?” The vendor furrowed his brows.

“Me? Oh, I’m a nobody,” Asami coughed, “but I get that a lot. Heard there’s a mover star around with a similar face to mine.”

“Yeah, yeah that must be it. I mean, you do have that sort of celebrity glamor to you.”

“Why thank you, sir, how kind of you.”

“But I’m still going to need you to pay up for what you threw away. It’s already soaked up the stench of the rotting leftover food in there.”

“Uh…” Asami wondered what the point of being rich was when she didn’t have any money on her right now.

“I’ve got it covered,” a light voice spoke up from behind. A slender hand holding money bills reached out, offering the money to the vendor who didn’t have to be asked twice about taking it.

Asami turned around and her ‘thank you’ remained stuck in her throat when she came face to face with the dazzling beauty that was the President’s daughter. Black, long hair that was so impossibly straight and shiny fell past her shoulders and stopped around her waist. The neat parting in her hair was central, showing off her perfectly symmetrical face that stood out with its pouty lips and captivating hazel eyes. Her clear skin looked so soft and tender that Asami had to suppress her urge to reach out and give it a slight squeeze.

Yuki smiled kindly, showing dimples. “I think it’s only fair to try and even things out after you lost your girlfriend to me.” And she winked, making it clear that it was just a joke.

Asami didn’t know what it was about that woman, but she felt herself getting flustered, blushing slightly. Her wits had been charmed off her. “I think she’s worth more than the price of a magazine,” she tried to joke back but her unsteady voice made her sound upset.

Believing that she had actually offended Asami, Yuki’s playful smile quickly vanished and she looked genuinely distressed over the misunderstanding. She carefully touched Asami’s wrist and gently pulled her along so they would walk away from the street vendor who had been listening in on them too eagerly.

“I’m sorry, that was a tasteless joke,” Yuki apologized, looking bashful to the ground as they strolled down the street with no goal. “I thought we would be on the same page about this topic. Aside from literally being on the same page about it...What I mean is, I absolutely respect what you and Korra have and would never-”

“I know,” Asami finally said, unable to hold back a laugh anymore. “I’m not angry at you. I know how the press works and since the past few weeks have been a little bit too peaceful, they decided to recycle what works best for selling papers.”

Breathing out in relief, Yuki let out a low chuckle, giving Asami a warm smile. “I knew you would be too smart to let this get to you.”

If there was something Asami loved more than getting heartfelt compliments, then it was getting heartfelt compliments from other accomplished people. “Thank you. I also knew that you would be above having a love affair with someone already in a relationship.”

“Then you already believe in me more than my own father does,” Yuki said, trying to play it off as a joke but her voice faltered towards the end. “After all Korra has done for the city, he still doesn’t like her very much.”

Asami swallowed. She understood the pain of not holding the same views as your father and almost losing him over it all too well. She put a soothing hand on Yuki’s shoulder. “Let him work it out on his own, you don’t owe him anything. But if he ever comes around and admits his mistakes, do try to forgive him.”

Yuki looked up with a sad smile. “It still hurts.”

“It does,” Asami whispered, her fingers on Yuki’s shoulder twitching. “It won’t stop hurting until you get closure. Until you forgive him. Until you have no other choice but to accept him as he was.”

If Yuki had noticed that Asami was talking about her own father, then she wasn’t letting it on. She touched Asami’s hand on her shoulder. “Thank you, Asami.”

Asami retracted her hand and they both walked in silence for another minute before they had to stop, coming to a halt in front of an intersection.

“I didn’t realize we’ve walked this far,” Yuki said, looking around with a frown. “I was supposed to attend some meeting in the state council building before I saw you.”

“Oh, me too,” Asami suddenly remembered. She had been on her way to a meeting with Republic City’s most important political figures when her eyes had caught the flashy cover of a magazine on a mobile newspaper stand. From there on, she had completely forgotten her primary objective and the reason she had left her office in the middle of the day in the first place. “Are you meeting the council too for infrastructure questions?”

“Yes. I figured I’d see you there.”

“Then it seems like we two are going to be fashionably late.”

Both began walking back the path they had come from.

“So,” Asami slowly drawled, for lack of better topics, “you never denied you’re into Korra, huh?”

Asami watched in fascination as Yuki’s cheeks went from dainty white to scarlet red in a matter of seconds. If Asami were to press a finger against her skin, would she burn herself?

“I prefer not to lie,” Yuki coughed out, holding a hand to her flushed face that had betrayed her. “She is a very remarkable person, not just because she is the Avatar. Her mind is able to think around corners that most people would never be able to reach.”

Humming in agreement, Asami smiled fondly when thinking about her lover.

“And of course, there’s also her physique…”

When Asami turned to stare at her, Yuki thought she had gone too far, her voice trailing off in a stutter. “Not that I looked much…”

“I knew it,” Asami suddenly said, using her hands to gesture a V-figure, “it’s because her abs do that thing right?”

A bit dumbstruck, Yuki nodded.

Asami sighed. “I totally get that. Hang in there, girl.”

 

\--

 

“You are all under arrest for the possession of –”

“Hey, you’re the Avatar, aren’t ya?”

Korra sighed and continued to metalbend handcuffs onto a group of criminals who had been caught with illegal weapons at the docks.

“Guys, it’s the Avatar who busted us!”

“That’s so cool, man,” one of the men said over his shoulder when Korra handcuffed him as well. “Big fan, Avatar, big fan.”

“If you really were, you probably wouldn’t be here right now,” Korra said, raising a brow. “You know, since I’m all for peace and balance and other non-illegal stuff.”

“Someone’s gotta feed the kids,” he shrugged, unperturbed. “Anyway, really love how you kicked that metal titan’s ass. And congrats on the hot babe! Heard you’re about to take it to the next level?”

“What!” Korra accidentally bent the metal too tight around the guy’s wrists, who winced in pain. “Oh, sorry.” She fixed the dent. “But seriously, what are you talking about?”

“Words travel fast on the streets,” another man answered, already cuffed and kneeing on the ground. “If you’re trying to lay low, don’t go asking around criminals for advice.”

“I’m a busy person, okay, I don’t really have the time to meet up some dating expert,” Korra mumbled, tying all the men together with a rope so the police could collect them later. “And sometimes they have really good ideas. Besides how to smuggle drugs into prison undetected.”

“Why don’t you ask Skullcrusher over there, he’s the hopeless romantic among us,” said one of the arrested men and nodded to a fellow gang member.

Korra warily eyed the man they called ‘Skullcrusher’. He was what a huge boulder would look like in human form but with small eyes and a large mouth and scars all over his face. Even when sitting on the ground, he was almost as tall as Korra and three times as broad. He cracked a terrifying smile.

“Uhm, I think I’m going to pass,” Korra nervously said, taking a cautious step back. “I like my girlfriend the way she is, with skull and all…”

“Sit,” the Skullcrusher said, and his deep and frightening voice shook Korra’s core like a thumping bass sound. Korra instantly plopped down on her behind, sitting with her legs crossed in front of him. “Listen.”

And Korra just nodded, eyes wide in fear.

“Here’s a few suggestions…”

 

\--

 

“I want that financial report finished by next week, is that feasible? Excellent. Does anyone have any questions? Good, this concludes our meeting.”

Asami shuffled her documents together into one pile and stood up to leave when suddenly the door to the meeting room burst open, and Varrick stormed in with a triumphant smirk. And where Varrick was, there was also Zhu Li not too far behind him and she came in wheeling a flip chart. The managers in the room shot an insecure glance at Asami, but their boss looked just as wary as them at the arrival of the unexpected guests.

Zhu Li shortly bowed to Asami. “I’m very sorry about what’s going to happen in the next few minutes. And every day after.”

“Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen,” Varrick announced, brushing over the lapels of his shiny green suit, “I’m very sorry to interrupt-”

“No, you’re not,” Asami grumbled.

“True, but that sentence was part of my introduction, so if you allow me,” Varrick snapped with his fingers and Zhu Li flipped to the first page of the chart. Printed in bold, black letters, the title stated **‘Monthly Report on the Dating Life of the Avatar and the CEO of Future Industries’.**

Asami blanched. “Varrick, don’t you dare-”

“Darling, you know I do, so just sit back and relax. You will thank me and Zhu Li later.” Varrick turned to the rest of the executive board, confidently smiling despite the confused looks he was receiving. “This meeting is of utmost importance and believe me, there are not many things I would consider important except for proper foot care, but this!” He pointed to the flip chart. “This needs our full attention right now.”

Hiding her face behind her hands, Asami’s muffled voice hollowly rang out, “Do the rest of my managers need to be here for it?”

Varrick laughed out loud. “Of course they do not! But! We’re going to need a few different opinions for our surveys, so we might as well use them.”

He cleared his throat.

“Word on the street is, the Avatar is planning to confess her undying love for our dear Miss Sato. And by ‘word on the street’, I literally mean the streets. The unsafe ones.” He cheerfully whipped on his feet. “According to a few inside men, we have mob bosses betting against each other on locations where the Avatar might make the magic happen. I, of course, got in on the action too, which is why I need to improve my chances.”

The executive board gasped in unison and turned to Asami. “Miss Sato, can we just say that we are profoundly happy for you?”

Asami’s jaw went slack before she stuttered out, “Wait, wait, can we go back to the part where you said that Korra plans to confess?”

“Why would I repeat it if you have obviously gotten it the first time,” Varrick said with a frown. “Anyway, Zhu Li, do the thing!”

And Zhu Li unceremoniously flipped to the next page. It was a pie diagram, titled with ‘ **Places where Korra and Asami have gone on dates so far** ’, and ‘ _The Avatar Park’_ made up a quarter of the diagram. Other places included ‘ _Fancy Restaurant I still don’t know how to spell so please research that for me Zhu Li’, ‘The Spirit World’, ‘That Seaweed Noodle Place’_ and _‘Asami’s Office’_.

“Now, as you can see, we have compiled a list of the most frequent places they’ve gone on dates to so we can predict where the Avatar will confess.”

“Varrick,” Zhu Li muttered out of the corner of her mouth, “I think Asami stopped breathing.”

Gripping the table tightly until her knuckles turned white, Asami inhaled shakily. “Aside from the fact that it’s almost disturbing how much you know about my private life…we never had any dates in my office.”

“Well, I expanded the criteria of dates,” Varrick replied, “which means, any place where you share romantic moments and spend a significant amount of time copulating counts as a date.”

“Please kill me,” Asami groaned, covering her eyes and sinking in her chair. If she had her eyes open, she would feel even more mortified at the sight of her unsurprised looking co-workers.

“Anyway,” Varrick said with enthusiasm, “this is where your opinions, for once, might become relevant.” He gestured to the executive board. “Where do you think will the Avatar confess after casually asking Miss Sato out under the pretense that it is a usual date like any other?”

Several hands shot up in the air.

“Yes, you over there, the guy who looks like he would embezzle millions,” Varrick pointed with his finger, “your suggestion please.”

“Uh…” Thrown by the comment, the man stuttered, “I – I personally don’t think that the Avatar will choose any of these places. If I wanted to take my relationship to the next level, I would choose a new and more exciting location.”

His co-workers retracted their arms, becoming insecure about their own ideas after they had heard an answer that made so much more sense.

“That’s actually…realistic,” Zhu Li said, furrowing her brows and looking at the now useless flip chart. 

“No!” Varrick exclaimed, holding his head. “I already placed my money on Asami’s office! Urgh, alright, thank goodness I’m so rich it won’t even hurt.”

Asami abruptly stood up, knocking her chair over in the process. “I’m done for today. If there’s anything else, you’ll find me in my office. Except for you, Varrick, please don’t come near me for the next few…years. Zhu Li, you are still welcome of course.”

“Really sorry about that,” Zhu Li apologized, “I tried to talk him out of it, but he promised me he would take me to the moon as soon as he figures out a way where we won’t die the moment we leave the earth’s atmosphere.”

“Space suit,” Asami supplied shortly before she proceeded to storm out of the room.

Zhu Li turned to Varrick with a glare, who raised his hands in defense.

“Come on, Zhu Li, you know I don’t look good in space suits!”


	2. Chapter 2

Asami was a rational person, she wasn’t going to let a few rumors ruffle her feathers. It would do her no good to dwell on ‘what if’s’, she preferred to focus on the present and on reality.

“Oh no…I need to look my absolute best when she does confess…”

Well, Asami was a rational person most of the time and even she couldn’t ignore it when few rumors turned into the talk of the town that even renowned newspapers felt the need to pick up the topic. It did her absolutely no good to dwell on fantasy scenarios but did that stop her? Reality be damned, she needed to be thoroughly prepared in case Korra decided to advance their relationship.

“Why do I have nothing to wear?” Asami hissed under her breath, digging through her clothes like a crazed badger mole. Most of her clothes still had their price tags attached when they soared through the air and landed in a heap on the ground.

After going through her entire closet without finding anything suitable to wear for a potentially big and important night, Asami resigned and flung herself on her bed. She could already see the headlines flashing in front of her eyes. ‘ _Avatar Confesses Love With Orchestra Music and Fireworks; Sato Responds By Showing Up In A Dress From Last Season’._ Asami shuddered at the thought.

Then she scolded herself for thinking that way because neither her nor Korra actually cared that much about what they wore as long as it would be something easy to get out of at the end of the night.

Korra never let a chance pass by to make her feel desirable and sexy in anything she wore, and it wasn’t like Asami didn’t know she was attractive, but it did boost her ego ten-fold to know that the most powerful woman in the world would readily kneel before her whenever she wanted.

Feeling confident again, Asami rolled off the bed and stood up, straightening herself. She was Asami Sato after all and her natural self was perfect enough for herself and Korra.  

\--

 

“I heard she’s going to bend her a palace of ice!”

“Well, my sources tell me that she’s planning to use her Avatar-state to bend away the clouds so she can confess beneath the moon light!”

“No, no, she’s going to burn her confession into the ground and make it so big that it can be read from space. Using the forests of the Earth Kingdom!”

“I know a guy who knows a guy who knows the warden of a criminal that the Avatar personally arrested and I know for a fact that she’s going to create a new island just for the boss!”

These were just a few of the examples Asami had snatched up on her way to her office. Though her employees immediately fell silent when she walked past them, they somehow didn’t quite grasp the concept of sound traveling further and reaching Asami’s ears even after she had walked around a corner.

“An ice palace,” Asami mumbled to herself, shuddering at the thought. As amazing it would be if Korra managed to pull off an actual architectonic masterpiece with her waterbending, there was still one restriction: Asami didn’t like the cold, much less living in it. Which Korra knew. Or so she hoped.

And the other ideas were too ridiculous to entertain, so Asami didn’t bother to dwell on them. As if Korra would set fire to entire forests just to prove a point…on a second thought, maybe Asami shouldn’t be too quick to dismiss that possibility and maybe check the water-carrying capacity of her airships just in case. 

“A new island…”

Asami furrowed her brows. She actually liked the sound of a secluded place just for the two of them. It could be like Airtemple Island, not too far away from Republic City, a safe home.

She quickly dismissed that thought with a shake of her head. Korra was just trying to tell her that she loved her, not that she had planned an eternity and beyond together, so maybe creating an island was a bit too much. The bar of expectation was already set too high because all of Republic City seemed to anticipate a reality-altering, earth-shattering and time-stopping grand confession from Korra.

But it was just three simple words that Asami wanted to hear, nothing more and nothing less, and as long as they were genuine, she didn’t care about where and when she heard them.

In a way, she had heard them in many different ways before. Sometimes not even in a verbal form, but still powerful nonetheless.

She could feel Korra’s ‘I love you’s in her warm embraces, could taste them on her hungry lips, could sense it in Korra’s trembling fingers whenever the eagerness to touch Asami got the better of her.

Asami didn’t need a mind-blowing confession. Her mind was already blown from the sheer fact that she was dating Korra, such luck and bliss shouldn’t be granted to one mere person, a mortal such as her. But then again, Asami wasn’t one to complain and she would take everything that Korra was willing to give her.

\--

 

“Not that I’m not happy that you’ve finally got time for a night out with us…but maybe you should take it slow…and maybe breathe in between your drinks…”

When a cautious hand tried to pry away her drink from her, Asami growled and pulled the glass closer to her. “I’m fine.”

“And I believe you, but that was three drinks ago,” Opal patiently said and reached for the alcohol again, but Asami just quickly downed it in one gulp.

“Wow! That was amazing!” Bolin cheered, but then coughed after receiving a glare from his girlfriend. “Amazingly lame. Asami, you know I love you and all, and I’m like the last person to tell people to drink less, but I seriously don’t think that this is going to solve anything.”

“That’s right,” Opal nodded, giving her boyfriend a thankful nudge, “it won’t help the situation.”

“Well, it won’t hurt the situation either,” Asami muttered and raised her arm to gesture to the bartender, which Opal quickly pulled down.

“Of course it will,” the airbender said in exasperation, “you don’t want to get too much public attention right now, just imagine the headlines the next day!”

“ _’Drunk Sato Destroys Local Bar And Gets Naked!’_ ,” Bolin supplied with an example. “Korra would be so mad. Even if mostly because she wasn’t around to see it.”

“Bolin, not helping.”

“Okay, that headline was a stretch, I’m sorry. Asami wouldn’t strip after destroying a bar. You either destroy a bar or you strip, you can’t do both because that would be just excessive and you probably need to reevaluate your life choices.”

Opal massaged her forehead. “Let’s assume Asami won’t destroy this bar-”

“Are you implying that I am incapable of doing it?” Asami asked with a challenging tone. She felt compelled to do something dangerously foolish right now after Bolin had given her that idea.

“What?” Opal said in alarm. “No, no, I’m sure you’re very capable of destroying things but there’s no need to prove it right now…”

“That doesn’t keep everyone else from destroying things,” Asami huffed in frustration. “They destroy and destroy and Korra has to clean up their mess again and again. If I burn this place to the ground, she’ll have to come back from the Fire Nation and fix it, right?”

“Uhm,” Bolin shared a nervous look with Opal, “how about we don’t burn anything down tonight for a change, I kinda like not smelling after ashes for once. You know, downside of being a lavabender and the brother of a firebender.”

“And Korra’s going to be back in two days,” Opal gently reminded Asami, “just two more nights.”

“Two nights,” Asami repeated with disdain in her voice, “two nights plus the seven nights before that. I’d rather burn this place down to distract myself than think about it.”

A nearby waiter stood still and glanced suspiciously in their direction. Bolin let out a loud, nervous laugh and waved him off, “It’s just an expression. She’s not going to burn anything down tonight.”

“I could though,” Asami said defiantly, crossing her arms.

“We know you can, honey,” Opal said soothingly, “but this won’t solve the deeper, underlying problem that you’ve been avoiding. Korra’s absence has never affected you this much before.”

“Oh, I know why,” Bolin perked up, “before, you missed Korra as a friend. But now that you two are lovers, you’re also missing the ‘fun’ parts of a relationship.”

Asami raised one eyebrow. “You mean sex?”

“No, slurping seaweed noodles together and having burping competitions,” Bolin replied seriously. “But sex too. I mean, seriously, you two have so much sex that even _I_ can’t look any monks in the eye anymore because I feel like they’ll just _know._ ”

“That’s true,” Opal supplied with a nod, “I once saw how Korra touched you when she thought no one was looking and afterwards I had to meditate in the mountains for a month to clear my head of all sins.”

Asami’s expression twisted into disbelief. “And I’m supposed to believe you?”

“Yeah, I was there,” Bolin nodded, then added with a grin, “though there wasn’t much meditating going on in the mountains if you know what I mean.”

“And by that he means chasing around horse-goats all day and plucking berries only to find out that they’re toxic after a dozen were already in his stomach,” Opal finished drily. “I really didn’t get to meditate much. I mean, I tried, but it’s hard to focus if you constantly hear your boyfriend gagging in the background.”

“I could’ve died, thank you very much,” Bolin grumbled.

“Aw, babe, you know I wouldn’t have let that happen,” Opal said sweetly, squeezing his cheeks. “Not before you’re thirty and no longer hot anyway.”

“Hey,” Bolin gasped in indignation, “at least give me forty, okay?”

Amused by their playful banter, Asami chuckled quietly. The couple in front of her reminded her so much of the things she was missing now that Korra had been gone for a week. The mock fights, the fluent changes from snarky to soft in their conversations, the discussions over the universe or over the mundane. With Korra, there was no side of her that she had to hide or didn’t get to express.

“Asami,” Bolin waved with a hand in front of her face, “you still with us?”

“Of course,” Asami blinked, realizing that she was sobering up, “just thought about how cute the two of you are.”

“Aw,” Bolin excitedly turned to his girlfriend, “did you hear? Asami called us cute.” He coughed into his fist. “Though she probably meant mostly me.”

Letting out an amused snort, Opal said, “Thank you, Asami. We would have competed for ‘cutest couple’ but I don’t think anyone can beat the Avatar and the CEO of Future Industries. People tend to be impressed by titles.”

“But I’m sure you would have given us a good run for it,” Asami replied with a wink.

“Of course,” Bolin puffed out his chest, “not going down without a fight. Speaking of fights, do you still feel like looking for one?”

Asami smiled and shook her head. “No, I’m feeling much better now. Thank you. Without you two, I wouldn’t know what I would have done.”

“Well, I have more headlines for you if you want to know,” Bolin suggested but Opal hit his arm. “But who needs to know everything, am I right? Sometimes not knowing is a blessing. I mean, I made it in my life till here not knowing stuff and I think I’ve done pretty well.”

“Yes, you did,” Opal said with a proud smile, giving him a kiss on the cheeks. “Except that thing with Kuvira, that was a disaster.”

“Haha, yeah,” Bolin sheepishly scratched his neck, “it’s not like she was inherently evil, she just got mad with power. You know, like most people eventually do in that kind of position.”

“Korra would never,” Asami retorted.

“Yeah, but that’s because Korra’s not the most powerful person,” Bolin said with a shrug.

Feeling offended on Korra’s behalf, Asami immediately countered, “And why is that?” No one could deny Korra’s power, she had always risen out of every conflict as the victor.

Bolin and Opal shared an amused look before they turned to Asami.

“Well, Korra could probably annihilate the earth if she wanted to, but we all know that she’s not going to do it without asking your opinion on it first, so who do you think is the most powerful person in the world?”

 

\--

 

It had gotten impossible for Asami to concentrate; she couldn’t even focus her thoughts long enough to read through one paragraph of a contract without her vision becoming blurry.

With a frustrated sigh, she shoved all documents away from her and sank back in her office chair.

The entire city was buzzing with rumors on Korra’s return. Her employees were smiling too brightly, too knowingly at her. The people on the streets were whispering too loudly about her. The press was speculating too wildly about all the possibilities of a passionate reunion.

Even her friends couldn’t help her anymore, she had become numb to their words of reassurance. What she desperately needed was Korra – the only one able to calm her down now in this chaos.

The telephone on her desk rang and she picked it up without delay, grateful for the distraction. It could only be her secretary. “Yes?”

“I, uhm, I have a telegram message from Avatar Ko-”

“Yes, and?” Asami interrupted her, sitting upright in an instant.

“She says that she is very sorry but an uprising in the Northern Water Tribe needs her immediate attention and-”

Asami slumped down in her chair, almost dropping the phone.

“Miss Sato? Miss Sato, are you still there?”

Mentally no, Asami thought, her voice ringing hollow. “Yes.”

Her secretary cleared their throat on the other end of the line. “Avatar Korra will have to travel to a remote location again and she’s not sure how long it’s going to take or when she can contact you again. And I'm not really sure if I'm reading the next sentence right, but I think it says that she stepped onto a giant spider-bee, but I can’t really tell because this is where the telegram message got messy…”

Asami just breathed into the phone, suddenly too tired to speak. She closed her eyes when she felt them beginning to burn.

“Miss? I…I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Asami weakly whispered. “Thank you for delivering the message.”

“Of course. Whatever you need, Miss Sato.”

And Asami hung up. She knew what she needed, but no one could give it to her right now.

\--

Her office was like her second home. Her best creations found their birth in this room; they started as a vague idea in her head, then turned into a rough sketch on paper, then shaped into something more concrete until a detailed blueprint would describe its construction. And when prototype after prototype was produced and tested and improved until the final product could be sold commercially, Asami was like its mother, overseeing its growth and progress.

She really loved her office, but lately it had become unbearable to stay in there for too long. With Korra gone, she had started overworking herself again, and what once was ambition that made her stay in the office until late evening, it was now fear of coming home to an empty house.

When the phone on her desk rang, Asami jumped in shock. Her secretary had long gone home, it was far too late for any business calls, no matter how urgent.

Maybe it was Korra? Her girlfriend knew that she wouldn’t leave her office when there was no reason to.

Asami lunged after the ringing phone and picked it up, her heart pounding wildly in her chest.

“Finally! Zhu Li, you can put away the spirit vine grenade now, our dear Asami is still in her office, there’s no need to blast the doors anymore. I know you’re disappointed honey, but we’ll get to test it another time.”

Asami held her forehead in disbelief. “Varrick?”

“You know it, darling. Now please be so kind and tell your security to let us in. Of course, that’s just a formality at this point because your security officers are already tied up and I’m already standing outside your office. But don’t let it be said that I have no manners!”

The line went dead and a second later, the double door to her office was flung wide open, with a triumphant Varrick marching through. Zhu Li strolled in behind him with an apologetic look.

“Please tell me you’re here so I can personally throw you off my rooftop,” Asami said through gritted teeth.

“My, my,” Varrick took a cautious step backwards, “that seems like a terrible idea as it can only be done once. And I’ve already reserved Zhu Li that right, so you’ll have to talk to her about it.”

Zhu Li just shook her head, stating that this was non-negotiable.

“But I’ve brought you something that might earn me your forgiveness,” Varrick cheerfully added, and he snapped with his fingers.

Entering the office, Bolin was the first one Asami saw, followed by Mako and then Opal. Between the three of them, they were carrying a large brown sack. A sack that was moving restlessly, writhing and kicking and turning.

Asami didn’t know if she could trust her eyes. She somehow instantly knew what was happening but at the same time, she didn’t want to believe it.

“Asami,” Mako spoke up, keeping his voice calm for her sake but his eyes still showed his worry. “Before we free Korra, we just want to let you know that it really hurt us to see you neglecting your own health. We couldn’t just sit still and wait anymore, so with Varrick’s help, we found Korra and took her home.”

Asami stormed over to the writhing sack, unable to think clearly. “Let her go.”

“Just one more thing,” Mako said, struggling to hold the body, “she wouldn’t come with us until the conflict in the Northern Water Tribe would end, and even though her father has everything under control there now, she will probably be a little…irritated.”

“Well, I would be too if you stuffed me inside there,” Opal remarked drily. “I think this sack used to carry rotten cabbages.”

“Certainly smells that way,” Bolin coughed, wrinkling his nose.

“Let her out now!” Asami’s voice was shaking.

Bolin, Mako and Opal carefully lowered the body to the ground and Mako used firebending to create a knife of flames, cautiously slicing the material up.

Feet that were tied together around the ankles shot up and kicked Mako in the stomach, knocking him on his back. Then they kicked up again and quickly found solid ground beneath their soles.

Wild, blue eyes feverishly looked around the room, assessing their situation. When they realized that there was no immediate danger but just a lot of familiar faces in a familiar place, they widened in confusion.

“Korra,” Asami breathed, reaching out a hand after her girlfriend.

“Mhm!”

But the cloth in her mouth kept Korra from speaking, rendering her words into a garbled mess, and after realizing that her friends had gagged her, she gave them a furious look.

“We know you can breathe fire, Korra,” Bolin defensively said, helping his brother back on his feet, “and while that’s a really cool trick, we didn’t want to risk getting burned.”

Asami was already working on untying Korra from the several ropes that her friends had tied around her ankles, knees, wrists and elbows. Her usually nimble fingers were trembling too hard to be efficient and she let out a frustrated sound when she couldn’t get one knot to open. “Was this really necessary?” she hissed.

“Oh, yeah, totally,” Bolin answered, scratching his neck, “she almost knocked out Opal when we forgot to restrain her fingers too.”

Only now did Asami see that Korra’s fingers had been tied into fists with several layers of cloth.

Korra rolled her eyes. “Foght n ws mbshd!” she mumbled.

Mako furrowed his brows. “What?”

“She thought she was ambushed,” Asami repeated impatiently, fumbling with a knot behind Korra’s head.

“How could you understand that?” Opal asked in disbelief.

“Bcs sh m grlfnd!” Korra said somewhat proudly. She grinned at Asami, whose own expression relaxed into a smile now that she knew that Korra was safe and back again.

“Come again?”

“Oh, I understood that one!” Bolin excitedly said, raising his hand. “’Because she’s my girlfriend’.”

“Fascinating,” Varrick said, “Zhu Li, this could be a new coded language for secret messages.”

“Can _someone_ please help me?” Asami said in exasperation as no one had made an attempt yet to assist her in freeing Korra from the ropes.  

“I’ve got this,” Zhu Li said, pulling out a pocket knife, which made Varrick discreetly take one step to the side. She made quick work of the ropes and cloths that had been binding Korra.

“I’m so going to kill you,” was the first thing Korra said once the cloth fell from her mouth. “You couldn’t have chosen another bag to transfer me in? I almost suffocated in there!”

“Ah, you were asleep for most of the ride so you wouldn’t know this, but we only stuffed you in this right before we entered the Future Industries Tower,” Varrick explained, bouncing on the heel of his feet, “I love surprising people.”

“Oh?” Korra raised a brow. “How about I surprise you by throwing you out of the window right now?”

Varrick barked out a laugh. “For one, that would be a bad surprise because you just spoiled it. Also, like I told Asami, you’ll have to talk to Zhu Li about it.”

“And you!” Korra turned to her friends. “Couldn’t you just take me home in, you know, the _normal_ way?”

“You’re not normal, you’re the Avatar,” Bolin replied with a shrug.

“And you’re too stubborn to argue with,” Mako added with a shrug of his own.

“Which is why this was the easiest way,” Opal concluded, copying the brothers' reaction. 

Korra's left eyebrow twitched. “I swear, if I wasn’t in Asami’s office right now, I’d-”

“Korra.”

And upon hearing Asami softly calling out her name, the tension in Korra’s shoulders left her. She slowly turned around.

“Asami,” she breathed out with a smile. “You look good.”

Asami could almost feel the disbelief in the five pairs of eyes that were discreetly roaming her appearance because she hadn’t changed her clothes nor left the office in the last two days and she felt as disgusting as she probably looked.

But Korra didn’t think so, her gentle eyes were only focused on Asami’s face, and when she saw the dark rings beneath green eyes, her expression faltered. “You were overworking yourself again.”

“Only a bit,” Asami whispered, suddenly feeling bashful about her looks. She used her fingers to quickly comb her hair that hadn’t been styled for days.

“Only a bit?” Bolin repeated incredulously. “Korra, she hasn’t left her office for days.”

“I’ve never seen her this way before,” Mako muttered, “we were all so worried.”

“Nothing we said would make her see reason,” Opal sighed, “so we had to get you back so you can tell her yourself that this is unhealthy.”

“And now that we’ve fulfilled our mission, I believe it is time for us to go,” Varrick said, already strutting towards the door. “Wouldn’t want to intrude on our favorite couple’s long awaited reunion!”

“Since when has he become sensible?” Mako asked in disbelief.

“Oh, don’t mind him,” Zhu Li said over her shoulder, following her husband out of the office, “he just wants to win his bet.”

“What bet?” Bolin asked, clueless, but Opal pulled him along by the wrist. “Varrick’s right, let’s give them two some alone time.”

“Oh, okay,” Bolin waved at Korra and Asami, “bye! Don’t forget to call us for a double date now that Korra’s back!”

And then there was only Mako left. He awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. “I hope you’re not too mad that we kind of abducted you, Korra.”

Seeing that he was genuinely sorry for using this questionable method, Korra let out a quiet chuckle and gave him a hug. “It’s all good. I know you did it with the right intention. Thanks, Mako.”

“Thank you,” Asami smiled at him, knowing that she couldn’t begin to express her gratitude for bringing Korra back.

Smiling in relief, he waved them both goodbye before he walked out of the office and closed the doors behind him.

“So,” Korra drawled, turning to Asami, “what did I miss in the two weeks I wasn’t in Republic City?”

One corner of Asami’s mouth curled up into a lopsided smile. “If I’m not the first answer, you can walk out the door right now.”

“Then it’s a good thing this was a rhetorical question,” Korra said with a laugh and leaned in for a kiss.

“Wait,” Asami pushed Korra’s face away with her hand and held her at an arm’s distance. She felt Korra’s pursed lips against the palm of her hand. “I…I probably smell because I haven’t...showered for two days…”

“And I smell after rotten cabbages, so we’re even,” Korra mumbled against Asami’s hand. “Asami, I missed you so much, I don’t care about anything but you right now.”

Asami lowered her arm and Korra rushed forward for a hug, placing a firm kiss on her mouth. It didn’t last long however as both immediately stepped back and began coughing.

“On a second thought, maybe we both could need a shower right now,” Asami said with a grimace.

“Yeah,” Korra muttered, sniffing at herself with a frown. “Let’s go home, Asami.”

Asami smiled. “Let’s go home.”

\--

 

Sitting in a bath tub full of hot water, Korra leaned back against her girlfriend's naked front side with a content sigh, enjoying her position as the little spoon. 

“This feels nice.”

“Are you talking about the hot water or my breasts?”

Korra hummed in thought. “Yes.”

Chuckling, Asami splashed some water against Korra’s face. “I thought you might appreciate a good bath after being on the road for so long.”

“You thought right, as usual,” Korra mumbled with her chin submerged in the water, collecting soap bubbles in her hand. “When I saw how much dirt you actually scrubbed off me, I believed for one moment that I had to be a swamp monster.”  

“A very cute one though,” Asami said with a light laugh, scooping up a few soap bubbles to place them on top of Korra’s head. “I’d still date you, I think. But you’d have to keep the touching to a minimum because mud is hard to wash off my silk clothes…”

Korra frowned and released her little mountain of bubbles onto the surface of the water again. “That would suck so much…we would be like star-crossed lovers, except I’m from the swamp. Swamp-crossed lovers.”

Asami traced the outline of Korra’s back muscles with her fingers, loving the feeling of slick skin beneath her fingertips. “But I thank the spirits that you’re not a swamp monster…because I’d definitely miss feeling this…” And her fingernails gently grazed down Korra’s spine.

Shuddering beneath the touch, Korra let out a breathless gasp. “Careful there, we just cleaned up.”

“You should know by now that I’ve never minded getting dirty,” Asami’s whispered in a low, suggestive tone. She wasn’t ready to stop touching Korra now that she finally had her back in her arms. She wasn’t ready to ever stop touching her if she could have a say in it.

“Oh, I know that,” Korra said with a knowing smirk, turning around so that she was almost lying on top of Asami. “But maybe we should get out if we plan on doing something else...unless you don't mind getting old grandma hands.”

Asami paused. Mainly because her mind tended to stop working whenever Korra’s bright blue eyes stared at her with so much intensity that she forgot her own name. “I…I wouldn’t mind becoming old with you…”

And once she realized how her words sounded after letting them involuntarily slip out, Asami’s eyes widened and she anxiously watched Korra’s face go through several expressions. From surprise, to realization, to disbelief, to…pure happiness.

Too excited to know what she was doing, Korra tried pushing herself up but the smooth ceramic surface of the bathtub didn’t give her much grip and she slid back into the water, on top of Asami. “Urgh!”

“Korra!” Asami wiped at her eyes that had been hit by some of the splashing water drops. “If you wanted to be top so badly, you could have just asked.”

“Ah, you know me, making dumb excuses to lie atop of beautiful ladies-”

“And by that I hope you mean only me.”

Korra laughed quietly when Asami pointedly poked her in the shoulder.

“Asami, you’re the only beautiful lady I ever want to lie on top of.”

“I sure hope so or I’m going to take back everything I said,” Asami muttered, allowing Korra to placate her with a kiss on her forehead.

“I haven’t answered you yet,” Korra whispered, smiling fondly. “I’d love to become old and wrinkly with you.”

Asami wanted to laugh and cry of happiness at the same time, amused by Korra’s purposefully weird choice of words but thrilled by the meaning behind it nonetheless. There were so many things she could have said in response, but the only words that left her mouth in that moment were, “I love you.”

Korra’s breath stilled. A smile that stretched from ear to ear slowly appeared on her bright face. “Really?" she breathlessly asked, voice brimming with unrestrained hope and excitement. 

Asami touched her girlfriend's cheek, smiling at her softly. "Really. I love you. Swamp monster and all."

Letting out a happy yell, Korra almost shouted her next words before she managed to keep her passionate answer within a noise level that wouldn't make Asami deaf. 

"I love you, too.” Korra couldn't stop grinning as she leaned forward to nudge Asami’s nose with her own. “Wrinkles and all.”

“Shut up,” Asami giggled, throwing some bubbles on Korra’s face. “That’s not going to happen for another thirty years.”

“Your fingers can’t lie,” Korra laughed, grabbing Asami’s wrists and making her face her own hands. “See how wrinkly you are, old woman?”

“But you love this old, wrinkly woman,” Asami hummed and wrapped her arms around Korra’s neck, pulling her closer for a kiss.

Korra’s smiling lips brushed against hers. “I sure do.” And she bridged the remaining distance, bringing their mouths together for a slow, lazy kiss. 

“You know,” Asami purred upon parting, absolutely content, “people have been talking about how you were going to surprise me with a confession burned to the ground. Using the Earth Kingdom’s forests.”

“That’s just excessive,” Korra muttered, using soap bubbles to create a mustache above Asami’s upper lip. “You know how I feel about destroying nature.”

“Then what about bending the clouds away so we can dine beneath the moonlight?” Asami grinned.

“Impossible without a hundred more Airbenders. I tried.” Korra sounded genuinely upset over not being able to accomplish this.

Asami blew at her mustache made of bubbles. “What about my palace made of ice?”

“Trick question, you don’t like ice.”

“But I like a palace.”

“You already live in one.” Korra tipped Asami’s nose. “And again, that would be just excessive.”

“Or just too hard for you to do?” Asami teased.

“Believe me, I would build a hundred palaces for you if that made you happy, but I’m quite certain that you’re going to complain after the third one.”

“And why is that?”

“Because we obviously are going to have sex in every room and you were already sore by the time we were done with this place.”

Asami pushed Korra’s head down into the water, which only resulted in Korra pressing her face against Asami’s chest.

“K-Korra,” she gasped when she felt lips nipping at her skin and she pulled Korra’s head up by the hair again.

“See, you can’t keep up with me, Sato,” Korra smirked, and Asami hated how good she looked even with wet hair plastered to her face.

“I’ll show you who can’t keep up,” Asami growled and yanked Korra down with her, both sinking beneath the water and the layer of bubbles that was covering up their wandering hands.

 

\----

 

Korra inhaled deeply and shut her eyes. “Here we go again, my old enemy.” Her eyelids fluttered open, revealing piercing blue eyes narrowed in determination.

“You don’t have to do it, Korra,” Asami said worriedly, touching her girlfriend’s shoulder.

“Oh, trust me, I have to,” Korra bent her fingers until they made a sickening cracking sound. “I’ve been too tolerant about this, but this is going to end. Today.”

The fierce expression she had right now was only reserved for her biggest enemies – dictators, anarchists and public press conferences.

When Korra had that look that seemed like she was ready to annihilate the world, Asami knew that there was nothing that could stop Korra now.

“Oh shit, there’s Yuki,” Korra suddenly squeaked, pushing her girlfriend in front of her, “could you please go for me?”

Asami apparently knew less than she thought. She turned around to Korra with a disbelieving look. “Really? You’re freaking out _now_? Not when Zhu Li warned us that Varrick might try to sabotage the press conference because he’s still angry about losing the bet?”

Korra grimaced. “I don’t want Yuki here for a different reason, I actually like her and this conference thing is going to be so awkward that she will hate me after it’s over…”

“No, it’s going to be fine,” Asami said firmly, “maybe people will finally believe us when all of us say that there’s no affair going on. Until now, you’ve been the only one publicly speaking about it and though I love you very dearly, holding speeches is not your strongest suit and you sound like a kid denying that they had their hand in the cookie jar.”

Groaning in frustration, Korra covered her face with her hands. “But I’m the kid who never even touched the cookie jar. I mean, sure, I’ve looked at it and might have appreciated the cookie for what it is, but I already have my own full jar of cookies...” She looked at Asami through her fingers. “Please don’t break up with me, I’m sorry for thinking about the other cookie jar.”

Snorting in amusement, Asami pried Korra’s hands off her face and gave them a quick kiss on the knuckles. “I’m not going to break up with you. Unless you keep using that metaphor,” she chuckled.

Letting out a short laugh in relief, Korra sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck. “Yeah, that wasn’t the best one I’ve come up with.”

“Well, you have a lot of other qualities.” Asami took Korra by the shoulders and pushed her towards the stage. “For example, you never back down from a challenge. Now go! Making the press wait will cause suspicion.”

“Wait, wait,” Korra nervously hissed, trying to step back, but Asami had already pushed her into the sight of the audience and the noise level rose as everybody’s attention landed on the Avatar.

“Avatar Korra!” “Avatar Korra, does your delay have anything to do with a lover’s quarrel?” “Avatar Korra, are you going to address the role that the President’s Daughter plays in your life?”

Overwhelmed, Korra shielded her eyes from the flashing cameras and blinked helplessly. “E-everyone, everyone please calm down!”

But the shouting and flashing continued, drowning out her feeble attempts to gain control of the situation.

“Guys…” Korra ground her teeth, feeling herself getting angrier with every second. “Do you want to hear about my love life or not?”

That silenced the crowd in an instant. Expectant gazes fell on her.

Letting out a silent sigh of relief, Korra cleared her throat and leaned closer to the microphone in front of her. “Urgh…so…first things first…” She glanced at the sweaty palm of her hand where she had written down a short list of some topics she wanted to address. But the ink had gotten all smudged up, now completely unreadable.

“Uh…”

“Avatar Korra, what is your relation to the President’s Daughter?” someone impatiently shouted.

Korra’s eyes found Yuki’s, who stood at the edge of the crowd, being one of the few people who weren’t out to tear her apart on the stage. Yuki smiled at her and gave her a shy wave.

Cheeks flushing, Korra stuttered out, “W-We’re cool.”

“Just cool?” Another reporter probed. “Your face seems to say otherwise.”

“What?” Korra was sweating nervously, her panicked mind trying to come up with a good excuse to dodge the entire topic.

“Avatar Korra, why is your face so red if you are not lying about your relationship with the President’s Daughter?”

“Ah…” Korra glanced to the side, where Asami was also restlessly shifting her weight between her feet. Asami urgently gestured her to say something.

“Uh, my face does that sometimes.” No, that was an unsatisfying answer. “Usually happens when I’m thinking about Asami naked.” Well, that answer was worse.

Out of the corner of her eyes, she could see Asami covering her flushed face with her hands.

“Outrageous!” An older woman croaked out in the back of the crowd. She was the only one to voice her thoughts, the others feverishly wrote in their notebooks, no doubt already formulating headlines for tomorrow’s newspaper.

Before Korra could feel the dread of what she had done settle in her chest, another reporter shouted, “So I take it your relationship with Asami Sato is still going strong?”

“Of course,” Korra said, indignant. “That’s why I’m here in the first place. Normally, I wouldn’t address stuff that has nothing to do with my duties as the Avatar, but you people have been so obsessed about my private life lately that I couldn’t do my job anymore. So I’m here today to clear up all rumors.”

The audience seemed to mull over her words. But the pause didn’t last long as the first reporter began to fire off another question.

“If your relationship with Asami Sato is so stable, then why did you have to be forcefully brought back from the Northern Water Tribe? Eyewitnesses report concerning changes to Sato’s behavior during your absence.”

Korra frowned. “She was just missing me a lot. And I lost track of time over there.” She let out a frustrated noise. “Aren’t you going to say anything about the fact that I stopped another civil war?”

“There was a civil war?”

“Are you kidding me? How could you miss that?” Korra threw up her hands in frustration. “So you rather wrote lies about my relationship than tell the important truth about an actual civil war? Which, by the way, _I_ stopped - you’re welcome.”

“Actually, your father-”

“And I’m not going to say this again, so listen up everybody,” Korra loudly said. “My private life is off limits. If you’ve got problems with how I handle my Avatar duties, fine, then come at me with your criticism and I’ll pretend to listen. But if you’re going to bring my personal life into my job as the Avatar, then I’ll reserve the right to deal with you however I see fit, whatever that entails. But just a heads up, it won’t feel good.”

Korra’s eyes roamed the crowd with a challenging look, daring anyone to ask another question that would set her off.

“So…,” a reporter hesitantly began, “did you actually create an island for just you and Miss Sato?”

The audience held their breath, watching Korra in anticipation. After she had just said that she didn't want to talk about her private life anymore, the reporter had still dared to ask about it. But it was a question they had all been dying to find out the answer to. 

“Uh…” Korra scratched her neck, suddenly becoming insecure. “Yeah, no, that didn’t work out,” she reluctantly admitted, cheeks tinging red in embarrassment because that was something she hadn’t even told Asami yet. “Had to leave for the Fire Nation before I could get the foundation started.”

Lips parting in a surprised ‘o’, Asami simply stared at Korra’s profile. So one of the rumors had been actually true and it warmed her heart that it was the one option Asami would have actually wanted.

With Korra looking genuinely upset over not being able to give her lover a big present, she became approachable for the audience again and they began to shout their questions more boldly now.

“What about the pet spirit animal you wanted to give her?”

“Guys,” Korra nervously hissed, swallowing when she felt Asami’s burning gaze on her, “if I had actually managed to tame it, you would have totally spoiled the surprise.”

“But what about planting a hundred roses on Miss Sato’s estate, that certainly was manageable?”

“Okay, that’s enough for today, press conference over,” Korra coughed and she pushed the microphone away, ignoring the disappointed groans. She staggered off the stage, right into her waiting girlfriend.

Asami raised a brow at her girlfriend. “A pet animal from the spirit world?”

“You would have loved it,” Korra defensively said, “it was super cuddly and smart and pretty independent, it would have left you alone for most of the time. Only downside was that it probably wouldn’t have fit in any of your rooms.”

“Korra…”

“It was a humming bee dragon, Asami! It was so damn fuzzy!” Korra sighed. “But sadly too large.”

Asami tried to hold it together for a few more questions, but her urge to either burst out laughing or jump Korra was making it difficult to think. “Korra, I’m not going to come home to a hundred roses, am I?”

Korra sheepishly grinned. “I had the feeling that cheesy displays might not really be your thing.”

Chuckling, Asami pulled Korra in for a hug, resting her chin on her girlfriend’s shoulder. “Well, I wouldn’t have disliked it if it was coming from your heart. But I did hear something about an island…”

“Oh,” Korra breathed out a nervous laugh, “yeah…a friend suggested that this might be the only thing I’m capable of doing that is also worthy of you.”

“Is that so?” Asami hummed into Korra’s ear, her lips curling into a smile. “And do I know this wise friend of yours?”

“Uh, probably not,” Korra coughed, thinking about a large boulder with eyes, “he goes by an alias. Anyway, if you really like the idea, we could maybe build an island together? You know, with my powers and your brains, we could actually construct a pretty decent place near Air Temple Island.”

Something about Korra asking her to build a place together made her want to tear her clothes off in public, but thankfully, she possessed her common sense long enough to simply press a heated kiss to Korra’s lips before whispering some tempting promises into her girlfriend’s ear.

Korra was just about to carry Asami off in her arms when a booming voice startled them.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, without any further introduction as you all know who I am, I’m going to use this chance to promote a passion project of mine!”

Asami and Korra stared at each other, their eyes widening. “Varrick!”

Indeed, the business mogul had claimed the stage of the press conference for himself, and most of the audience was still present, stunned by his sudden appearance.

“Varrick Productions is happy to announce,” Varrick excitedly spoke into the microphone, “that a romantic mover based on the Avatar and the CEO of Future Industries is in progress! Expect an epic love story as well as epic action scenes! Coming soon, Republic City’s favorite couple, on screen for everyone to enjoy! No more uncertain rumors, no more unconfirmed stories, everything is a hundred percent based on reality!”

“I’m so going to drop him off your tower,” Korra growled, already on her way to stomp towards him, but Zhu Li had beaten her to it. She suddenly appeared besides Varrick, scooped him up in her arms and carried him off the stage as he kept shouting, “Coming next winter!”

Asami furrowed her brows. “I kind of want to see that mover.”

“Yeah?” Korra was still staring after him with narrowed eyes. “If it really was a hundred percent based on reality, they’re going to have to censor half of it. Because of the violence,” she added when Asami raised a brow.

“Oh yeah?” Asami hummed in amusement. “And you’re sure it’s not because of all the _workout_ we’re doing?”

Korra paused. “Well, now the entire movie has to be censored.”

“Dork,” Asami laughed, and she took Korra’s hand into hers. It felt so right, touching her hand and intertwining their fingers and just being with her. It felt so right and comfortable that she wondered why she ever thought it would be hard to say those three words out loud.  “I love you.”

Nothing had ever been easier than saying that and nothing had ever felt more right.

Korra hugged Asami around the waist and easily lifted her up, spinning her around and laughing as Asami was squealing.

“Let me go,” Asami wheezed between her mix of laughing and screaming.

“Never!” Korra happily shouted and hugged her girlfriend tighter. “As long as you love me, I’ll never let you go!”

“Korra!” Asami was enjoying herself too much to actually care, but part of her still tried to at least make an attempt at being mature. “People are watching…”

And Korra set her down on her feet, surprising her with a quick kiss on the lips. She smiled that confident, assuring smile that made Asami want to believe anything. And she cheerfully said, “Let them watch. It’ll do the city some good to see some love on the front page for a change.”

Asami grinned. “Even if it’s between a swamp monster and an old, wrinkly woman?”

Korra’s own grin widened. “People always love a good story about star-crossed lovers.”

“You mean swamp-crossed.”

Korra blinked, staring at Asami in wonder and admiration. “I’m so in love with you.”

Blushing under the gaze, Asami teased, “Yeah?”

“Yeah. I’m so into you.”

“How much?”

“A lot.” Korra spread her arms. “Like, if my arms were the length of the earth’s equator, this would be how much I love you.”

“You know there are solar systems and galaxies out there, right? Which would make the earth miniscule in comparison.”

“Not on a scale from 1 to earth. I’ve got maximum love for you. Now kiss me before I change my mind about dating a nerd.”

“You love this nerd,” Asami whispered against Korra’s smiling lips.

“I sure do.”


End file.
